Selecting Fabric for Reupholstery | French Chair Makeover

Last week was way too busy to accomplish anything with it, so it’s nice to be making some headway.

Selecting fabric for reupholstery can be a headache, so I thought I would tell a little more about the fabric I chose for this project. It’s called Pom Pom Play by Waverly. I purchased it from JoAnn’s Fabric and Craft Store. I usually purchase my fabric from Hobby Lobby, and I have even bought some basic cotton duck at Wal-Mart. I fell in love though with this pattern, so I decided to give JoAnn’s a try.

When thinking through fabric for this project, I wanted to try something different. This chair had some style, and I wanted to play that up with a fun pattern. I first thought it would be nice to upholster the back of the chair in the Pom Pom, and the front is some classic French ticking. I was inspired by this French settee reupholstered in ticking that I saw on Pinterest.

labrocanteuse.blogspot.com

Isn’t that awesome?

I waited to buy the fabric until I could take advantage of a great President’s Day sale at JoAnn’s. The Waverly Pom Pom was 50% off it’s regular price for the weekend. Unfortunately though, the ticking that had the right color hue to correspond with the Waverly fabric was not on sale, and was going to be close to $30 a yard.

In a perfect world, I could have spent whatever I wanted on just the right fabric, but because I’m running a business, I needed to make a compromise to keep from investing too much in the chair. That’s important to remember when you are re-doing furniture to sell for a profit–you have to keep a close eye on your bottom line and make sure you aren’t overspending on materials. It’s easy to get carried away on inspiration.

So I scrapped the ticking idea, and bought enough of the Waverly to cover the whole chair. It was on sale for $9.99 a yard, and I also had a JoAnn’s coupon for 20% off my total purchase. I was able to buy 3.5 yards for a little over $30, tax included. It was a great deal and will allow me to price the chair more affordably when it’s ready to sell.

I’ve started stapling the fabric onto the chair, and it’s holding up well.

It’s stretching and pulling nice and tight for me, and I think it’s going to help create that certain fun style I was hoping for.

I think I can finish it tonight if not tomorrow . . . and then a I can post a full reveal.

6 Comments

I love this fabric! It’s easy to tell already that the chair is going to be darling. I do love ticking and it would have been fun to mix the two, but yes; you have to watch the price. I have been wanting to take an upholstery class, but can not find one available. Did you take a class or teach yourself? Happy to be a new follower.
hugs,
Jann

Melanie
on February 28, 2014 at 7:05 am

Hi Jann! Thanks so much for stopping by and becoming a follower. The little bit I know about upholstery I have taught myself. Last summer Marian @ MissMustardSeed.com posted a step by step reupholster of a French settee, and I happened across the exact same settee at an estate sale. I was able to follow along with her instructions and learn the basics. I’m still practicing, and I have to be careful what I take on because I can’t run a sewing machine! But I agree, a class would be so helpful! I’m finished with the chair and so happy with how it turned out. Stay tuned for more pictures soon. Have a great weekend!

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